Ben Elton and Comedy have announced they are to split after 30 years

In a statement the pair said, 'We wanted to finish on a high, but that horse has bolted, so we’re ending with “The Wright Way” instead’.

Tweeters were quick off the mark last night and this morning to make plenty of puns such as "Mr Wright is Mr Wrong" and “the sitcom that makes Amanda Holden's Big Top look like Seinfeld".

They even received a telegram from the late Charlie Chaplin reading, "To Mr. B. Elton, BBC Studios, White City, London. Congrats stop. Have found only person in world less funny than me stop. Name: You stop. Signed, C. Chaplin stop P.S.: Please, please, please... stop."

The cause of the split is believed to be the death of Margaret Thatcher. Comedy said, “Without her to rant against Ben is about as unfunny as the Professor of Unfunny, at Unfunny University, in Unfunny Town ”.

They added, "It's just that time. We are still best of friends and always will be – but this is the end. Ben has been spending more time with his money. We have just grown apart."

However they haven’t completely ruled out a reunion, possibly for the funeral of a famous Conservative, like Tony Blair.